HYDERABAD: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to extend the September 16 deadline for filing claims and objections under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls by a few weeks and extend the deadline for publishing the final rolls.
In a letter to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Saturday, Revanth said 73.39 lakh entries were currently under the Absentee, Shifted Dead and Duplicate (ASDD) category, raising concerns that voters who had temporarily moved could be treated as permanently shifted and deleted from the rolls.
“Some 73.39 lakh entries have been placed under the ASDD heads. Out of the 2.65 crore enumeration forms digitised so far, 60.5 lakh stand flagged for anomalies and 32.36 lakh for want of a link to the earlier roll. The two sets are distinct and do not overlap, they add up to 92.86 lakh and each of those electors is to be put on notice,” the chief minister said.
He urged the ECI to facilitate enrolment at new addresses where necessary and allow each elector at least three to four weeks to respond to notices and produce documents establishing eligibility. As no election is due in Telangana in the near future, he said, the extension could be considered.
Revanth also proposed ECI helpdesks, particularly in urban districts, to assist electors in responding to notices and stressed that no eligible voter should be inadvertently deleted. He sought additional manpower at the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) level.
“I would request that Additional Electoral Registration Officers be sanctioned in sufficient strength and that hearings be permitted at decentralised points below the ERO level with staggered dates and times printed on the notice itself, particularly across Hyderabad, Medchal-Malkajgiri and Rangareddy districts, which carry the greater part of the state’s electoral base,” Revanth said.
He assured the ECI of his government’s cooperation, including opening helpdesks, mobilising the administration to convene gram sabha and ward committee meetings, disseminating information and providing all other logistical support.
